Traynor YCV80 212 Combo

Traynor Custom Valve 80, 2x12 speakers, 80 Watts, two channels + boost on lead channel (lead= channel 1 here), seperate tone-controls for both channels, global reverb and master volume. scoop and boost switches on lead channel, bright and expander on clean channel, effect loop, headphone out, speaker emulated out. footswitch for channels and boost ... what more do you want?
well, maybe footswitchable reverb, but I can live without. I give it a 9 since in terms of versatility it can of course not compete against this all-in-one modellers, but hey, thats exactly what you want with an all-tube amp, you want character instead of 1000 average sounds, isn't it?

I mainly use a Gibson Les Paul Smartwood, music styles range from quite post-rock (think arab strap, logh) to alternative (Pumpkins anyone?) and some hardcore (Refused, Fugazi). This amp covers all the styles, which is pretty amazing.

Channel 1 (dist. channel)
starts almost clean with gain at 1 and ends at a nice hi-gain distortion- no over-the-top metal mayhem, but I don't need this anyway. one nice thing about this amp is that the distortion always stays defined, you can hear your axe clearly even with hi-gain settings. another nice one on this channel is the scoop switch, although I think "scoop" is a bit misleading. it's not this kind of new metal scoop switch that you'll find on many modern amps. I rather liked the explanation of a guy below, entitling it a "Fender-Marshall switch". Well, I'd not call the distortion Fender-like (which is actually a curse, isn't it?), but engaging the scoop switch the sound reminds me of a Marshall JCM 800.

Channel 2 (clean)
this one is really great- a hell of a clean tone! I compared it to a Marshall in the store (TSL 602), and the Traynor won hands down on the clean channel. The dist. channel is always nice on Marshalls, but hey, with this amp you have best of both worlds. The clean is warm and rich, and the reverb sound tremendous with this clean-tone. But not only that the real clean is good, the breaking up at volumes from 6 onwards is amazing. unbelievable, I could play on forever.

definately great sounding for all the styles I play. and I think 2x12 is the best combo format, you get all the bass that you'll ever need and still have a portable amp (how many of you have roadies out there?). loud enough for any gig. wait, I forgot another superb feature, that you'll miss on most amps: auto-biasing tubes, easy to change, long lifetime, no matching required!

well, what should I say, usually I'm not the guy giving 10s, but I can't think of any complaint, so I have to.

it's sturdy, heavy duty, built like a tank. speakers are protected by a steel grill- nice feature.
as I see it it will last forever.
However, concerning the question of gigging without backup, I think this is unprofessional, just been to a gig yesterday and it was horrible. he guys bass-amp blew and he was about 20min appologizing and tweaking the already dead amp.

heard great things about traynor. here in good old Europe it's Tascam / Teac that distribute them, so I have no idea about the warrenty that they give.
however, havn't needed it so far.

I was looking for an all-tube amp that would cover all my musical styles, that comes with modern features and that sounds unique. finally, I was down to the marshall tsl 601 and the traynor, and the traynor won in price, clean channel and was at least equal at the dist. channel. and, nobody around here has one- never seen somebody with a traynor. I don't want to sound like everybody else, having the same marshall-tone as a whole army of guitar-heads out there. and did i tell you that it looks damn good? classic but unique.
a real great amp... I just bought a shure sm57 today, since it sounds so sweet that I really want to record its full sound (amp+speakers)- it blows you away even through the studio monitors. so if you consider buying a tube-amp, give the ycv 80 a try. my rating is a 9.6, so I round to 10

All have been listed previously, so I won't repeat it all, I will add that the features match or exceed that which is available on almost every other top selling amp out there. In addition to the obvious - channel switching and reverb the inclusion of boost control and scoop are certainly welcomed. This amp is simplistic in design yet is lacking nothing at all. For the features included it is wildly difficult to comprehend how they can sell this product for the price they do. Unreal. Think about it.... name another 2x12 tube combo in this price range or any price range; by a company that will warranty it even if you use it as a tramoline. Some of the submissions talk about swaping out tubes and speakers..... hey I've been a player for over twenty years and have played almost everything out there, this is the best bang for the buck I have ever come across. I love what it offers. I play classic rock and country and I can get everything I need on a gig. With the XLR it is great in the studio as well.

I have a 1971 Fender Strat with stock pickups and a 1996 Fender USA Strat with stock pickups in addition to a Fishman TSV Powerbridge. I got rid of a Marshall head and 4x12 Marshall cabinet for this, in part cause it is easier on the back. I have to admit I am too old to lug a half stack around so moving to this seemed to be the ticket. My only worry was the lose of bottom end but that hasn't been the case at all. I am going to get the 2x12 extension cabinet for the other side of the stage but I am impressed witht its' range.

A-1, but I don't abuse it at all. I have always looked after any gear I have had and this amp will still look brand new in five years. Think about it, if you ever want to move to something else, you will do a whole lot betteron a trade or sale if it doesn't look like it's been to a war zone. All my stuff gets the Armourall treatment on a regular basis. The boy scout motto is to always be prepared so I have a backup plan with a rack mount tube pre amp running into the board but I trust this girl to always be ready to go. Extra fuses and tubes is also wise so you don't get left high and dry.

Haven't needed them, but have met the dealer rep in the past. I also have a great relationship with music store where I buy all my gear and he look after me in a heart beat. Find a place you can trust and be honest with them too and you will be well taken care of. Any gear I have purchased from Yorkville has worked great..... knock on wood!

Have been playing for over twenty years, and I love Strats. I have an Alesis Quadra-verb and a Tech 21 Tri-OD pedal, a Dunlop wah, a Tube Works Blue Tube II pre-amp. I have project studio too with a Roland VS-1880 workstation. If lost or stolen I would replace it pronto. I have owned a lot of amps. This amp hits the spot. Save your cash and get one of these amps. Give it a chance, I would be surprised if you are disappointed ..... as long as you know what you want. I know guys who have spent a bundle on amps and weren't happy. What does that say?????

Ok, its a Traynor YCV80, 80 watt all tube amp. Uses 3 Sovtek 12ax7(w?) preamp tubes and four 5881 WXT's. It has an effects loop with trim pots, and some other loop where you need to have a split cable. I dont know much about that one. Two channels, a whole mess of switches, and two Celestion Seventy 80 speakers. Theyre not premium, like Vintage 30s or Greenbacks or anything, but theyre very good for stock before you decide to switch out on high end models. All of this makes this amp crazy versatile. The controls are very versatile and can change the sound of the amp drastically. This would be a versatile amp without all of the eq-switches. The expander and brightness on the clean channel add a whole mess of varieties, same for the scoop and boost switches on the drive channel. In total, there are 8 different modes to choose from on two channels. Talk about versaility.
Another great feature is the auto biasing circuit. Changes as tubes age to meet the bias specs so the tubes last longer, and you can also swap in different tubes or pull tubes for lower volumes. Very nice.

Im using a Schecter Devil Tribal (sounds strange, but its also an incredibly versatile guitar despite its looks) with two hums into the amp with a Monster Jazz cable, with an occasional Boss CH-1 Super Chorus. The clean channel alone is amazing. You can use this for any music style from clean blues to jazz to funk, maybe even some country, but not with my guitar. Anyways, it can go from shimmering crystal clear to a dark resonant clean with a push of a couple buttons. You could use this channel alone with a couple drive pedals and your setup could be complete.
However, the drive channel equally merits high marks. It leaves off where the clean channel ends and starts from very low gain to medium high gain, very hot-rodded JCM 800 tones coming without the scoop or boost switches on. This amp is very bassy, which I like. The scoop switch does what its name implies, scoops the mids, but it also seems to raise the bass and maybe even take the treble down a bit for a much smoother drive. The boost switch adds everything, volume, gain, bass, mids and treble, but more so of the volume, gain and bass. It really is a powerful boost switch, almost too powerful. ALMOST, but not quite. Its good to go from a light gain for arpeggios and the like for rhythm and then to get a singing lead. Its good that the boost doesnt alter the eq as a third channel would. I prefer two channels anyways.

Traynor is practically the name for reliability. The cabinet wood is thick, and its not particle board but plywood. Plus, behind the mesh (which i think is very thin wire), there is a 16 gauge steel grille protecting those speakers. However, the tolex seems very prone to nicking, and its nicked in a couple places after relatively minor bumps. Id like it if it could be a little more durable, but oh well. Gives it character, right?

Now, I tried emailing Yorkville, and I had some sort of trouble getting the email to them. I dont know why. That and the .pdf file for the manual wasnt working. But I hear they are very helpful, that and their warranty is crazy. Unlimited two years, even if you break it. How about that.

For $350 used, this completely whips any amps ass under $1000 dollars, and above that, there are some amps that may have a sound or two that rival this one. The tone is amazing, I havent played any boutique amps like Engl or Bogner or anything, but I have played through various Marshalls, JCM 800, 900 and 2000, and Mesa Tremoverb (VERY nice amp, just not versatile enough) and some vintage Mesa, I think it was a Studio .22 or something similar, maybe a Subway blues. I compared this amp to amps that did not cost the same, as tube amps definitely cost a bit more than 350, at least the ones that sound good. I was almost tempted by the Mesa F-50, but then again sometimes I like the Marshall crunch. That and its almost 1000 bucks, and this was 350. And this sounds a bit better to my ears, although some might disagree. But its my ears, and the crowd wouldnt know the difference between a Bogner Ecstacy and a Crate GLX 212, which was the amp this one replaced. But my drummer noticed a difference, which is huge. This sounds awesome, and it cost less than the crate. Unbelievable. Email me if you got any questions, or can send me a working manual.

2003 Traynor YCV-80 amp. Versatile enough for my blues and rock n roll styles. Has 2 channels with switching function, FX loop and reverb. At 80 watts of power it has plenty of swat!

I play for the most part either teles or strats, but every so often I'll pull out my 335 or my Gretsh duo jet. This amp comes shining through for each guitar. In my opinion, it has a smooth creamy textured voice. Not a clean shimmering Fender-like sound (like the Fender twin I also own) but a nice punchy fat sound that could make Marshall jealous! Sound is crystal with no hum or static.

Distortion?....Look out, This benign looking amp has fangs with plenty of bite!
To me it has a very warm British-ey drive that will make any Zepplin fan salivate. The first time I brought it home I played some Jimmy Page/Cream licks, ooooooooh baby, what a sound it has! The boost and scoop switch is a nice feature allowing you to toggle through different distortion modes.
The Accutronics reverb is good, but I prefer the wetter Fender reverb.
All said, a very great sounding amp.

Years ago I gigged with a friend who owned a mid 70's (i think) Traynor. Other than tube changeout, it never gave hime any trouble. I heard that these amps are tough as nails. The same can be said about mine. I take good care of it (as well as all of my gear) and it has never given me any trouble in over a year of playing which is a hell of a lot more than I can say for that garbage called Marshall! I have been through 3 Marshall amps: 1 rinky-dink solid state and 2 tubed heads. The heads gave me nothing but fits for about 7 years especially the last one because I bought it new! Problems ranged from noise to flat out dying altogether! Thats why I bought the Traynor. Similar sound, BETTER construction.

Never dealt with them

I see no reason to give this amp nothing other than a 10. In 25 years of playing few amps would ever get that rating. If lost or stolen I wouldn't hesitate replacing it with another.

Personally I think if the crew at Traynor should broaden their marketabilty. That could give Marshall a run for the money. I 've heard a few refer too this amp as the "poor man's Marshall". Well all I have to say to that is BULLSHIT! If that's the way you think, go ahead and fork over $1500 to $2000 for the Marshall nameplate and take a chance at it crapping out on you like it did me. The Traynor amps are a much better price and quality.

I bought the Traynor ycv80 new in 2003 and I use it to play live in a band. we play everything from 50's rock and country to ccr to abba and this amp works great. It has 2 channels with an overdrive on the lead channel. Effects loop but I have never used it yet. Sounds great and very durable, I play it loud and alot.

I play a Fender American Strat and a lot of my playing is clean. I do find that the bass on the clean channel is over the top, I actually have to turn it down to 1 on the dial or I blow everybody else in the band off the stage. The distortion channel is awesome but I wish there wasn't such a big jump in volume between distortion and the overdrive. When playing live and using the footswitch it is hard to run back to your amp and turn the volume up or down.

This amp is a workaholic, I know because I use it every day, and I don't even carry my backup to gigs anymore. Turn it up and pound on it.

It comes with a 2 year full warranty and they will replace your amp if you are not happy with it, Never had any repairs yet.

I have been playing for 27 years off and on and I would definetly buy this amp again. I love the toughness of this amp and the clean sound you can get when you crank it, no distortion at all. I don't like the volume jump from the distortion to the overdrive it is just too much for my style. If you play hard core heavy metal then you may like this more. If any body has used any effects pedals on this amp what did you use and how did it sound? E-mail me at lorne_kingdon@anadarko.com

This is update of a review I posted here over 2 years ago!

I'm sure all the other reviews have filled you in here.

Still wish there was a footswitch for the effects loop!!!

I'm just using a Godin Signature Artisan ST w/ AAA top, ebony fretboard, wilkinson tremelo, 3 hot rails, and birdseye maple neck. It's a nice super-strat type of guitar, not a shredders guitar by any means though, it's too pretty for that. :)

Anyways, I've got the extension cab for it now and WOW! Does it ever open this thing up. The clean channel balances itself out with the distortion perfectly! I would say that they designed this thing with the 2x12 attached. Before the clean channel's bass would over power the distortions bass making it a difficult balance, but now it's just perfect.

Either way, the cleans are sparkly, the distortion is just godly! I tell you when you've got this amp in a band situation it just sounds so full! I let my friend borrow my amp one night for a gig because our bands were playing after each other. Man it's a total different experience being out in the audience and hearing your amps tone. It wasn't harsh at all, it was sweet and full, yet it didn't blow everyone in the first row out. I think this is because of the open back top, and closed bottom. It gives the sound room to disperse and not nail everyone right in front.

Either way I'm very content with the sounds from this amp, it does awesome clean, great classic OD, and nice hot-rodded JCM 800 type tones.

I had a tube bust which caused some problems and I had to get it fixed. It was my own damn fault though, it was cold in my bedroom (Canadian winter, and my amps next to my window) and I let the amp warm up for a bit (a minute) and I cranked it. Needless to say the temperature change killed one of the power tubes and caused something else to go hay-wire on top of it all. Well I think the best thing about this whole situation is that the store where I bought it from lent me the same Traynor while they sent mine back (at no cost to me) and when it came in I just swapped them back!

No not having a traynor, and the turn around time was a couple of weeks!!! Amazing! And it didn't even cost me a dime.

This company is outstanding, I've sent them a few emails.

1. Replied within a day.
2. Filled out a webform forgot to include my email, they snail mailed me!
3. Sent another recently about pulling power tubes and swapping for V30's I got a reply in 45 minutes!!!

Oh and yes, you can pull out two of the tubes and the amp will take the 2 ohm load. (I can't remember if it's inside or outside tubes, I'll double check, then try it out and keep you posted)

These guys are incredible, for a fairly large company they sure now how to make you feel important!

I couldn't be happier, 2 years with very few problems, great customer support and killer tone! What's not too like! And take a second glance at the price. Yeah that right, freakin' cheap too!

i play a jackson dkmg, i play anything form pantara-def leppard-jeff beck
iv ben playing for 2 years and ive delet with marshall and crate and when i heard this was the best amp on the market i had to check it out, i have played the ycv 40 and it was god and i can afford the extra 100 dollars so ill get theycv 80 no matter what

amzing clean
amazing distortion
if worst comes to worst ill just get a metal master

i hear you can kick the f*ck and it will be fine (when i played the ycv 40 i heard the guy say to my dad that he dropped it on the free way it was in perfect condition)

never had to deal but i like trayner so

amzing amamzing amazing check one out if you doubt me

Made in good'ole Canada!
The versatility of this amp far exceeded my expectations, with a little tweaking you can go from AC/DC-Pantera-Zep-Hendrix...unreal and hard to believe but is absolutly true. 2 channels, w/ channel 1 with a boost switch...I wish the boost wasn't as muddy as it is however, if you tweak it just right you can alleviate the problem. Effects loop is wonderful and the "speaker Kill" button makes it great for practicing in an apartment when noise is a factor. I use this amp in the garage, my apartment when at school, and obviously at live gigs with my band and for recording. This amp has more than enough power, very very loud when you want it to be. I changed the stock tubes. I found that the Sovteks that were in them rattled quite abit with harmonic noise at high volumes ( a tendency for high power combo amps). I changed the tubes to a matched quad of KT-66's and the preamp tubes to 12AX7EH's and it sounded awesome, and rattle problem solved. The KT-66's are tough to come by but they sound incredible. They do draw a lot of current and the amp gets very very hot. I made sure with the people at traynor that these tubes were ok and they said it was fine. An amazing sound with those tubes!! I also run this unit through a 4x12 musicman cabinet from the 70's and it really fills out the sound, however, running it by itself works just as well also.

I use a Daion Mark XX...I know i know, what the hell is a Daion?? well, think top quality Ibanez and PRS combo...its awesome!! I play Hendrix to Rage and everything in between. This isa very quiet amp with regards to noise interference, hardly any hum, but as we all know Tube amps have a little background noise, nature of the beast. The clean channel is great, a real glassy kind of spakle tone and the dirty channel...well, its just mean sounding!! I can say that i find i can get nearly any sound i want out of it, but thats my ear, so judge for youself, however i do belive most will agree with me.

Never had a problem, built like a Sherman Tank. High quality Birch plywood consruction with a rugged metal chasis. Even the control knobs are recessed to prevent them from breaking in case of a fall.

Top knotch. Best Warrenty in the business, you break it, they replace it for a 2 year period, that unheard of for any amp, especially a tube combo-amp. The people at Traynor are awesome!! When i emailed them about my tubes or a lost schematic, they responded witht he info i needed with in a day or so, can't beat it. You can ask them anything from repairs to mods and they will send you in the right direction. Great poeple!

What can i say that hasn't already been said, just an incredible amp and for the money, warrenty, and support you get, this amp has it all and thats not including the sound!! An awesome amp all around.

Traynor YCV 80 2x12

2 Channels + Boost etc.
Wish it had foot-switchable Reverb, Scoop and Bright.
Also a CLEAN BOOST.
Well built.
Kinda' wish it had a "tighter" bottom end. Speakers maybe ?
The stock tubes will get you by but I'm changing mine.
What really convinced me to buy this amp was seeing a few great players using it in small 1500 seaters.They weren't miking the amp !!!!!!!! After about 20 feet from the amp the sound just opens up.
They obviously weren't using the tubes I got in my amp !!
I noticed some great suggestions in the reviews concerning this stuff.

I'm a "jobbing" guitar player and play a really wide variety of styles over the course of a week. I also do a house gig which requires on the fly changes from Dwight Yokam to Metallica. This amp has to perform or it's out the window.

I've only had the amp 4 days but I did a gig within hours of getting it and it was quite an experience.
It was a 50's/60's show band revue type thing and I felt confident that the amp was going to do it for me. No pedals, nothing!! (Just the footswitcher). I was right !
Firstly, for the gig, the reverb was aces !!! (Don't know how happy I'll be about it when I'm playing RAGE tho').
It took some tweaking thru the first set but I was grabbing the sounds I was needing. (For that set).
After the first set I felt the amp had way more potential then it was showing and put it down to a tube change.
Second set starts and the amp is now cooking. All of a sudden it's ALL there and that spongy thing starts happening,(I'm getting shivers thinking about it),it was great!! (I'm still changing the tubes tho').
Everyone accused me of turning up..., even the sound man. No sooner do I smooth that over then I switch to Channel 1, (for the first time that evening I might add),and all hell breaks loose because I didn't realize I had the BOOST switch ON. Oops!! It's that easy to make 400 people move as one. Once I got the BOOST switch off Channel 1 I was happy. I wasn't happy tho' when the next time I intentionally hit the BOOST the same thing happened.(LOUD). I guess it must be somehow connected to the MASTER VOL. because I've noticed that it seems to be proportionate to the MASTER VOL. setting.(I run the master at 10 and fine tune between channel and guitar settings). It would be nice to be able to control that.
Sounded great on the gig. Sounds amazing in the garage. Got gigs lined up all next week so I could give you a better review after that.
I'm not worried. I can dial pretty well anything in on it. I tried about 6 different distortion pedals and they all sounded like shit compared to the natural gain. Love the amp !!!

I play for a living and don't have time for second-rate shit. I've played a LOT of amps and this by far is the best deal I've had come my way in a long time. For the price of these new you can't go wrong. I was saving for a MESA. Forget it !!!
Mod it and laugh all the way to the bank ..............

80 watts tube 2X12 Celestions - upgraded to Marshall Heritage 80's
2 Channels with Boost -footswitch tuns on boost, 1st, and clean channels
Speaker defeat switch so you can use headphone and record direct at 3AM. It's like a virtual tube amp with all the same controls but silent.
Headphone jack - to hear what your recording
Direct out - to record with amp emulation.
Ballanced output - also for recording
Brightness and Expander switches
Reverb with best springs in the biz. (3)
Fot the price you can't and wont do better!!

My Amp was reworked by Trace VooDoo Amps and it has El34's in it to Give the ultimate Marshall tone. Okay the clean is clear, smoother, creamier, not as harsh as before. The clean quickly reacts to your playing. If you dig in the sound bites back enough to almost sag, play smooth and it's smooth like Santana in hot butter. The hot gain stages, with EL34's, sounds like a Marshall and a Mesa when the boost is engaged. Tip #`1 Always run this with master all the way up!

The first owner had it for 9 months and I've had it for about 1 year. No problems at all. I can't speak for the stock ones because of the new tubes and speakers...but these have higher quality boards than most of the other big name amps, so mods by a good tech are easy.

Never needed but they have no questions for 2 years, even if you break it. Nobody does that...

For $625 shipped it's very hard to do better. I can do any Slash, Lizzy, Santana music and with a Metal Master I can do metalica, megadeth, and Godsmack with ease.